The National Investigation Agency (NIA) arrested two individuals, Abdul Rehman alias Abdul Rahman and Mujibur Rehman alias Mujibur Rahman Altham Sahib, from Thanjavur district in Tamil Nadu as part of its investigation into the Hizb-ut-Tahrir case. The arrests followed extensive searches at 10 locations across five districts in the state.
Hizb-ut-Tahrir is an international pan-Islamist and fundamentalist group committed to re-establishing an Islamic caliphate and enforcing a constitution penned by the group’s founder, Taqi al-Din al-Nabhani. The NIA’s investigation revealed that Rehman and Rehman Sahib were conducting secret classes to radicalize young people, promoting extremist ideologies, and portraying India’s democracy, Constitution, law, and judiciary as anti-Islamic.
According to the NIA, the suspects taught trainees that India was now Darul Kufr (Land of Non-believers) and emphasized their duty to transform it into Darul Islam through violent jihad.
The NIA’s searches, which took place in districts including Tiruchi, Thanjavur, and Pudukottai, led to the seizure of digital devices such as mobile phones, laptops, SIM cards, and memory cards. Incriminating documents, including books and printouts outlining the ideology of Hizb-ut-Tahrir, Khilafa, Islamic State, and the proposed Khilafa government and its funding structures, were also confiscated.
In Erode, NIA officials searched two houses. At Karuppanasamy Street in Periyar Nagar, a team from Kochi seized a mobile phone and two pen drives from the residence of Mohammed Isaq, a 40-year-old mechanic. Meanwhile, at Ashok Nagar near Poondurai, officials from Chennai searched the home of Sharbuddin, a 40-year-old photographer, though no items were seized. Sharbuddin was asked to appear at the NIA office in Chennai on 7 July 2024.
NIA Arrests 2 Accused after Extensive Searches in TN in Hiz-ut-Tahrir Case pic.twitter.com/LNK2EeEqZ9
— NIA India (@NIA_India) June 30, 2024
These arrests and searches are part of a broader crackdown on Hizb-ut-Tahrir in Tamil Nadu. In May 2024, a joint operation by the NIA, Intelligence Bureau, and Tamil Nadu police led to the arrest of six individuals in Chennai for their alleged links to the group. The operations on 30 June 2024 were a follow-up to these earlier actions.
(with inputs from The Hindu)
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